Editorial

The 155th birthday of József Fodor a pioneer contributor to Central European hygiene

Zoltán Virágh, MD

CEJOEM 1998; 4(3):211-213

The founder of Hungarian public health, one of the best known European hygienists of his age was born 155 years ago.
    At the beginning of his career, he was highly affected by the progress achieved by Edwin Chadwick and John Simon in the field of hygiene in England.
    His two-year study trip was a decisive factor for his whole life. He got acquinted with the well developed health culture of England and Europe and with the up-to-date hygienic research work performed by Pettenkoffer in Munich, by Liebig in Giessen and by Recklinghausen in Würzburg already at an early age. Attending the then already regularly organised International Public Health and Demographic Congresses he was very impressed by the discussions and talks with the most exceeding professionals of his time. Some other outstanding personalities of the age were – beside the above-mentioned ones – the Germans: Buchner, Rubner; the Frenchmen: Laveran, Chantemesse, Roux, Nocard, Bertillon; the Americans: Vaughan; the Englishmen: Lister, Adami, Hunter, Watson, Cheyne, Sherrington, Hankin; Gruber from Vienna; Hueppe von Prague; Cunningham from Calcutta; Erismann, Metchnikoff and Filatov from Russia and several more well-known medical scientists.
Major milestones in Fodor’s life:
 

1843	Born on 16th July in Lakócsa, county Somogy, Hungary, Europe
1865	Obtains his degree in medicine at the University of Budapest
1869	Is qualified as privatdocent in the University of Budapest
1870	Obtains scholarships for study trips in Germany and England
1872	Is appointed professor of hygiene in the University of Kolozsvár
1873	His book: “Public health in England, with regard to the situation of medicine, health regulations, forensic medicine and the conditions in Hungary” is published and awarded with a 200 gold coins prize of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences
1874	Is appointed professor of public health in the University of Budapest
1876	Act on Public Health (No. 1876:14)
1882	Further, longer study trip in England, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Greece and Turkey  Is awarded by the great gold medal of Empress Augusta Victoria for his instruments serving for experiments in the field of hygiene, presented at the Medical Exhibition, Berlin  Starts training courses for school doctors during the summer holidays
1883	Is elected associate of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences
1884	Designs a program for the education of school doctors and teachers of health
1885	Start of his researches about the bactericidal property of blood  Is elected member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences
1886	Foundation of the National Society of Public Health (Secretary General of the society till 1893)
1889–1891	Gets appointed dean of the Faculty of Medicine
1891	Is elected honorary doctor of the University of Cambridge
1893	Writes the chapter dealing with the hygiene of soil in the book of Theodor Weil “Handbuch der Hygiene”
1894	Vice-chairman of the International Public Health and Demographic Congress, Budapest  Gets decorated with the Order of the Iron Crown by HM the King
1894–1895	Is elected Rector Magnificus of the University of Budapest
1895	Is elected an associate of the Italian Society of Hygiene
1896	Is elected a honorary member of the Helsinki Society of Hygiene
1897	Becomes honorary/ordinary member of the following societies:  Gesellschaft für öffentliche Gesundheitspflege (Berlin)  Verein für öffentliche Gesundheitspflege (Frankfurt a.M.)  Sanitary Institute of Great Britain (London)  Society of Medical Officers of Health (London)  Società d’Igiene Fiorentina  Reale Società Italiana d’Igiene (Milano)  Association Internationale pour le Progrès de l’Hygiène (Bruxelles)  Sociedad Espagnol de Higiene (Madrid)  Finnish Society of Hygiene (Helsinki)  Société Royale de Médicine Publique (Bruxelles)  Société Française d’Hygiène (Paris)  Is rewarded by honorary membership and the great golden medal by the Academy of Naples  Is elected honorary member to the Royal Academy of Belgium
1900	Gets decorated with the Order of Saint Sava
1901	Is recommended by the Hungarian Academy of Sciences for the very first Nobel prize in medicine but in the competition he cannot take part any more
1901	Dies unexpectedly on 20th March, at the age of 58

Even 100 years later, the up-to-dateness and foresight of József Fodor is not only significant but also much-to-be-admired.
E.g.:

• the collection and evaluation of statistical data, the importance of informatics in
• health science;
• the application of the unity of exact, scientific working method and its testing
• in practice;
• the sound bases of his precise, experimental hygienic researches;
• his up-to-date microbiological and epidemiological testing methods;
• the brilliancy of his immunological researches;
• his practical, public health-epidemiological activity ranges:
• from courses for school doctors to the teaching of hygienists;
• from the vividness of university lectures to the 1876 year’s Public Health Act (which belonged to the most up-to-date ones in the world and which was a well working Health Act in Hungary for nearly 100 years!);
• from a plan of a central observation site to the reform of the education of medical officers;
• from social-hygienic methods to public activity with the ability of being a wonderful public speaker.